Time is running out! We have only 5 more sleeps in Europe. It is hard to believe that this awesome ride is coming to an end. We are really excited to get back to see all of our friends and family and to get the kids some stablity, but I won't lie and say I haven't enjoyed every minute of these 3 years living abroad.
Even amidst the mayhem of packing, unpacking, physically uprooting ourselves, making new friends, learning our way around new places, learning a new language, and everything, it has been worth it. We are not returning the same people we left as. We have each grown in our own ways.
Lainey was still a baby, fresh out of diapers, when we left Michigan. Now she's a big girl, nearly 6 years old who can ride a 2-wheeler, write her name, read a few words, speak some German/French/Italian, and has the confidence and sass of a child twice her age. She speaks with a British accent and thinks that it is totally normal to go to Italy or France for a long weekend. She doesn't remember having a mom who works, and thinks it completely natural to hear 4 languages (or more) spoken by her classmates. She is a worldly little girl with friends on 3 continents. She looks forward to going to Olga's for lunch next week like some kids look forward to Disney World...it's all about wanting the things you can't have, right? She will be 14 months older than some of the kids in her Kindergarten class, but will have to catch up to those younger kids in their knowledge of cartoons on Nickelodeon and the Disney Channel.
Aidan is no little boy anymore. He is a mini-man. He speaks German nearly as well as I do. He is finishing 2nd grade doing 4th grade math. He is comfortably being the only non-German on his soccer team. He made his First Reconciliation and First Communion. He says he thinks it will be "weird" to see everything written in English, but is nervous to make friends in another new school. He can't fathom having more than 17 kids in his class, but hopes that means more possible friends. He wishes England was closer to Michigan so that he and William can visit more often. He is concerned about riding a school bus without a buckle. He has learned to make friends, leave friends behind, and have friends leave him behind. He thinks most people move every 2-3 years, but hopes to find a friend that he won't have to leave or be left behind by.
Jason has made such strides in his career. He has jumped a bunch of rungs on the corporate ladder that he couldn't have in Detroit. His name and face and work is known by executives here, where in Detroit in was (and may be again) one of the drones. He has worked amazingly hard and done great things at work and it is nice to be in a smaller group where the higher ups notice and acknowledge that. As much as he works, he still finds lots of time to be with the kids on the weekends, take them to school, be at soccer practice, go to ballet recitals, etc. He has learned to navigate roads in over 10 countries, speak a bit of lots of languages, and to be a real support to me since we don't have grandmas near by to call on in a pinch.
I think I may have changed the most though. I speak German quite fluently. I haven't worked in 3 years, and am scared that I have forgotten how to teach and how to balance work and family. I have learned to eat new foods, how to stand on my own 2 feet more than I ever did before, how to navigate roads (even with a stick shift) and public transportation in lots of places. I've become a published (albiet unpaid) writer. I've run a 10K. Like the kids, I have friends on 3 continents. I have become better aware of the world and it's issues.
I think that I am more worried about fitting back in at home than I was about fitting in in Switzerland when we first moved. I want us to meld back in, but also don't want to lose some of the cool things we've learned or forget friends or memories of our time here. Re-entry is going to be a big tricky, and I really hope we don't sound like the girl in American Pie who always talked about "this one time at band camp". We will try really hard not to start every sentence with "this one time in Switzerland/Germany", but please forgive us if we do occasionally mention something about our time here, because it has been more than just a vacation, our experiences here have been our lives and have become a part of us.
As much as I'm looking forward to getting back to normalcy and stability and, yes, shopping and eating at our favorite restaurants, I'm savouring these last few days of semi-retirement by having lunch with friends and spending lots of time with the kids at school. That being said, I also kind of wish this week were already over and we were already on US soil, as the good-byes are hard and moving process even harder. Here's hoping for a very calm and uneventful, non-teary week and one that ends with us all, especially Cinnamon, back in the USA! We can't wait to see everyone as soon as possible!
Thanks GM for giving us the gift of this opportunity.
The best way to sum up how I feel about the last 3 years is found in the song "The Good Life" by One Republic. I think of it as my theme song right now! Just change a few city names, and it's pretty accurate! (Trips to IKEA or sitting in the dark right now because we've sold all of our lights, being the BS part) Here are the lyrics:
Woke up in London yesterday
Found myself in the city near Piccadilly
Don't really know how I got here
I got some pictures on my phone
New names and numbers that I don't know
Address to places like Abbey Road
Day turns to night, night turns to whatever we want
We're young enough to say
[Chorus]
Oh this has gotta be the good life
This has gotta be the good life
This could really be a good life, good life
Say oh, got this feeling that you can't fight
Like this city is on fire tonight
This could really be a good life
A good, good life
Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh
[Verse 2]
To my friends in New York, I say hello
My friends in L.A. they don't know
Where I've been for the past few years or so
Paris to China to Col-or-ado
Sometimes there's airplanes I can' t jump out
Sometimes there's bullshit that don't work now
We are god of stories but please tell me-e-e-e
What there is to complain about
[Bridge 1]
When you're happy like a fool
Let it take you over
When everything is out
You gotta take it in
[Chorus]
Oh this has gotta be the good life
This has gotta be the good life
This could really be a good life, good life
Say oh, got this feeling that you can't fight
Like this city is on fire tonight
This could really be a good life
A good, good life
Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh
A good good life Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh
[Bridge 2]
Hopelessly
I feel like there might be something that I'll miss
Hopelessly
I feel like the window closes oh so quick
Hopelessly
I'm taking a mental picture of you now
'Cuz hopelessly
The hope is we have so much to feel good about
[Chorus]
Oh this has gotta be the good life
This has gotta be the good life
This could really be a good life, good life
Say oh, got this feeling that you can't fight
Like this city is on fire tonight
This could really be a good life
A good, good life
Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh
Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh, Oh
To my friends in New York, I say hello
My friends in L.A. they don't know
Where I've been for the past few years or so
Paris to China to Col-or-ado
Sometimes there's airplanes I can' t jump out
Sometimes there's bullshit that don't work now
We are god of stories but please tell me-e-e-e
What there is to complain about
